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5/26/14

Bungling White House reveals Afghanistan CIA agent

The identity of the highest-ranking CIA agent in Afghanistan was leaked to the media this weekend—by the White House itself. The error occurred in a list of top officials who were joining President Obama during his visit to Kabul yesterday. The military gave the list to the White House press office, which emailed it to journalists. It ended up in a report sent to some 6,000 people, The Washington Post reports.
A Post reporter noticed that the report referred to a "station chief," indicating a country's top CIA official. He notified the White House press office, and top officials recognized the problem; they sent out a new list, leaving off the name. What's next for the CIA officer isn't certain, the Post notes, but the administration asked the paper not to reveal his identity out of concern for his safety. [More] [BJS]